I know similar questions have been asked before but not answered really so my question is, deciding between these two as sub £200 DAC/Amp combo seem to be the two best ones to pair with my AKG K712pro and my next headphone (pretty set on a ex-demo set of Focal Clear’s at £750).
Both are in my cart, which do I buy? The Zen Dac v2 is like £70 cheaper but it’s not a huge difference and I’ve heard the DX3 Pro+ are more accurate and better imaging/soundstage?
Has anyone tried both and can recommend or suggest an alternative (that I can buy in the UK - Schiit products for example doesn’t exist here) that’s £250 ($350) or less.
Appreciate any help or advice ya’ll can offer, thanks!
Schiit does exist in the UK - just buy it from their main site and ship it over. If your order including shipping is less than £135 you don’t pay any import tax too.
if you weren’t planning to upgrade I would say Zen Dac.
AKG 700 series isn’t very dac/amp picky (I have 7xx and 702) and the true bass button is nice for songs that need it.
was also eying Focal clears but broke atm so can’t say if the Zen Dac is “good enough” for them.
IMO having the features you want/need is the most important part.
For a clear I really think you might want to invest more into the source, but if you can’t you could still get something nice around that budget. I’d personally say an Asgard 3 + one of the 100 buck dacs, or alternatively a lake people g103s. I’d go with the Asgard if you want something warmer leaning or the g103s for something more neutral leaning. Would depend on what sonic aspects you want to prioritize. Although neither are a combo unit so if you have to have a combo unit that would change things (but I think going separates is beneficial here if you want to potentially upgrade something in the future, which you might if you are considering clears)
You could look used and see what’s out there but it would be hit or miss if there’s anything out there atm, although I think you are in the price point where the used listings out there don’t end up being that much cheaper than new
